The Last Green Pepper Emperor
“[A]lso in a compound in Khabarovsk, in 1945, was the Last Manchu, Pu Yi, the last emperor of the Qing…
Scream Queens and Liquid Fire
I’m not sure I could recommend “Scream Queens“; you have to have a strong stomach to be able to handle……
Chile trouvée at Hermès…
There I was, visiting the Festival des Métiers in Vienna, through which Hermès gives some insight into the work of its…
Mysteries of Laura – and the ‘Tasting’ of Chilli
The 2014/15 season – of TV, not plant growing – featured superhot chile peppers not just in The Flash, but…
LaMeiZi, the Spice Girls of Hunan
Let’s return from China with something from China, and with music. After all, whenever an appearance of chile pepper in…
Brick Mansions
Why the hell would I write about a movie (that is not about cooking)? Well, some people like to spot…
China’s National Day – in Chilli
October 1st is China’s National Day, celebrating the establishment of the People’s Republic in 1949… and among the celebratory gestures…
The Virtuous Chilli
So far, I had commonly come across the notion that chile peppers grown by a madman will produce and, especially,…
Capsicum and Culture: The “Cryptobotany” of Chilli in Popular Culture
There is something of a discipline, though not necessarily a very scientific one, called cryptozoology: the study of mythological, legendary…